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The 'Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation', later 'Grumman Aerospace Corporation', was a leading producer of military and civilian aircraft of the 20th century. Founded in 1929 by Leroy Grumman with Jake Swirbul and William Schwendler, its independent existence ended in a 1994 merger with the Northrop Corporation to form Northrop Grumman.

Contents

History

Grumman aircraft by type and relative date

External links

History

Leroy Grumman and others worked for the Loening Aircraft Engineering Corporation in the 1920s, but when it was bought by Keystone Aircraft Corporation and the operations moved from New York City to Pennsylvania, Grumman and his partners (Edmund Ward Poor, William Schwendler, Jake Swirbul, and Clint Towl) started their own company in an old Cox-Klemin Aircraft Co. factory in Baldwin on Long Island, NY.
The company filed as a business on 5 December 1929, and opened its doors 2 January 1930. Keeping busy by welding aluminum tubing for truck frames, the company eagerly pursued contracts with the US Navy. Grumman designed the first practical floats with a retractable landing gear for the Navy, and this launched Grumman into the aviation market. The first Grumman aircraft was also for the Navy, the Grumman FF-1, a biplane with retractable landing gear. This was followed by a number of other successful designs. As the company grew, it moved to Valley Stream, New York, then Farmingdale, New York, finally ending up at Bethpage, New York, all located on Long Island as well. The airport in Bethpage has closed and was converted to residential areas. For much of the Cold War period Grumman was the largest single corporate employer on Long Island. Grumman's products were considered so reliable and ruggedly built that the company was often referred to as the "'Grumman Iron Works'."
During World War II, Grumman became famous for its Navy fighter aircraft, F4F Wildcat and F6F Hellcat, and for its torpedo bomber TBF Avenger. Grumman's first jet plane, the F9F Panther, became operational in 1949, but the company's big postwar successes came in the 1960s with the A-6 Intruder and in the 1970s with the F-14 Tomcat.
Grumman were also the chief contractor on the Apollo Lunar Module that landed men on the moon. They received the contract on 7 November, 1962, and ultimately built 13 lunar modules (LMs). As the Apollo program neared its end, Grumman was one of the chief competitors for the contract to design and build the Space Shuttle, but lost to Rockwell International.
Meanwhile, in 1969, the company changed its name to 'Grumman Aerospace Corporation', and in 1978 it sold the Grumman-American Division to Gulfstream Aerospace. Grumman built the Grumman Long Life Vehicle (LLV), a light transport mail truck designed for and used by the United States Postal Service. The LLV entered service in 1986.
The end of the Cold War at the beginning of the 1990s and the ensuing reduced need for defense spending led to a wave of mergers as aerospace companies shrank; in 1994 Grumman merged with Northrop to form Northrop Grumman.

Grumman aircraft by type and relative date

★ The Cats

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★ F4F Wildcat

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★ F6F Hellcat

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★ F7F Tigercat

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★ F8F Bearcat

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★ F9F Panther

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★ F9F/F-9 Cougar

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★ XF10F Jaguar

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★ F11F/F-11 Tiger

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★ F-14 Tomcat

★ Fighter aircraft

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★ Grumman FF

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★ Grumman F2F

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★ Grumman F3F

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★ XF5F Skyrocket

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★ Grumman XP-50

★ Attack

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★ AF Guardian

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★ A-6 Intruder

★ Bomber

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★ TBF Avenger

★ Amphibious

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★ JF Duck

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★ J2F Duck

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★ G-21 Goose some modified as Super or Turbo Goose

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★ G-44 Widgeon

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★ HU-16 Albatross (Coast Guard UF-1/UF-2, Navy U-16, Civilian G-111)

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★ G-73 Mallard

★ Other

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★ C-1 Trader

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★ E-1 Tracer

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★ S-2 Tracker

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★ E-2 Hawkeye

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★ C-2 Greyhound

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★ OV-1 Mohawk

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★ EA-6B Prowler

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★ Grumman X-29A

★ Space

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★ Apollo Lunar Module

★ Civilian

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★ Grumman Gulfstream I

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★ Grumman Gulfstream II

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★ Grumman American AA-1 (1971-76)

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★ Grumman American AA-1B Trainer (1971-76)

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★ Grumman American AA-5 Traveler (1972-75)

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★ Grumman American AA-5A Cheetah (1976-79)

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★ Grumman American AA-5B Tiger (1975-79)

★ Other

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★ Grumman Olson used to build aluminum truck bodies, known as a stepvan

External links

★ Grumman profile on Aerofiles.com